Shade-guide



A. M. HASWELL. I

SHADE GUIDE.

Patented Mar. 7, 1893.-

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED M. HASWELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SHADE-GUIDE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 493,162, dated March 7, 1893.

Application filed November 23, 1892. Serial No. 452,930. (No model.)

T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED M. HASWELL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, Cook county, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shade-Guides, (Case 0;) and my preferred manner of carrying out the invention is set forth in the following full,clear, and exact description, terminating with claims particularly specifying the novelty.

This invention relates to window curtains or shades. and more especially to the fixtures used in connection therewith; and the object of the same is to produce an improved guide for the edges of the shade asit moves up and down over the window. This object I accomplish by the construction hereinafter more fully described and as illustrated in the drawings, Wherein- Figure 1 is an elevation of a window, showing a shadehung therein on an ordinary spring roller and guided by my improved devices along the vertical edge of the curtain. Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the brackets. Fig. 3 is an inside elevation showing the manner of application of this bracket to an outside curtain-fixture, and to the window-frame above an inside curtainfixture. Fig. 4 is a plan View of the two blanks from which the clasp is madethe full lines indicating cuts, and the dotted lines indicating the positions of bends in the finished members. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the clasp complete and mounted on the end of the curtain-stick. Fig. 6 is a plan view of the tightener illustrated in elevation in Fig. 1.

In the usual fixtures a mounted on a window-frame is journaled the ordinary spring-' roller 2), or it may be a roller having cords by which it can be operated or provided with counterbalancing weights, or otherwise. The shade c is secured at its upper end to this roller, and at its lower end carries a stick (1 preferably havinga tassel or ring 6 by which it may be handled.

The present invention contemplates the provision of guides standing along the vertical sides of the frame whereby the ends of the stick will be guided as the shade is raised and lowered-the object being that the stick, and hence the lower end of the shade, will not be able to swing to and fro either in the wind or under the force of any other power, and hence cannot become entangled with thelace or other curtains and cannot have its edges torn or disfigured. Heretofore such guides have been made by stretching a wire tightly along each vertical side of the window-frame, sustaining its upper end by a bracket and applying to its lower end a tightener, and a clasp on the end of the stick loosely engaged the -wire. In the present case I use practically the same general idea, with improvements in the construction of the bracket, clasp, and tightener serving to produce the advantages set forth below. It will be understood that there are two devices such as described, and only one of which is shown complete in Fig. 1, and hence a description of one will suffice for both.

The bracket best seen in Fig. 2 consists of a single piece of sheet metal (such as steel,

brass, iron, or the like) of about the shape Two cuts or incisions are made in this bentover portion, producing two side tangs h h and an intermediate lip lo, and the former are permitted to remain in parallelism with the foot while the latter is bent out at about right angles thereto as shown and provided with oneor more perforations. Through the latter ispassed the wire or wires 7; which serve as theguides-a knotj being formed in each wire and resting upon the lip 70 to prevent the wire pulling through the perforation therein. It will be noticed that this lip stands above the line of the screw-hole in the foot so that no obstruction is offered for seating the screw when applying the bracket as in Fig. 3.

' When this bracket is to be used on an outside curtain-fixture as also shown in this figure, the footfis passed outside and the tangs h inside of the fixture, while the bend g rests on the upper edge thereof, and the stringing of the wire is the same. \Vith either fixture the bracket can be in the exact position desired, and will support the guide wire or wires exactly so that the end of the curtain-stick will pass up and down in close proximity to them.

From two pieces of sheetmetal shaped about as seen in Fig. 4 are cut the members of each clasp. ()ne membero is of tin, brass, or other suitable material and of asize to embrace the end of the stick when bent on the dotted lines, and a split pin it passes through this member and the stick to hold the parts together. In the body of this member between the dotted lines are formed two sharp point-ed teeth or prongs w w, Which-when the member is applied to the stick and driven upon it-e1nbed the end thereof as will be clear, and preventany looseness between the parts. The other member is of tempered steel cut in about the shape shown and with two arms :0 a; which are bent finally into the position shown in Fig. 5 so as to form a perfect oval, their extremities lapping at the outer side of the oval and one of the arms having a slight double angle or offset m where it lies upon the other,in order that the interior of the oval shall be perfectly smooth. The body of this member between these arms is fiat and extends above and below the line of the arms as at g so as to be in vertical length about the height of the end of the other member '11, and through these ends 3 are passed rivets .e' which also take into the end of the member 4) and connect this member therewith in a rigid and permanent manner. One member may be nickeled and the other member blued, and the appearance of the finished clasp will be most pleasing. No corners are offered to catch in the lace curtains, wood-work, or other obj ects, and a large smooth oval is present for the guide wire or wires.

In Fig. 5 I have shown the clasp complete as attached to the end of the curtain-stick (Z.

The tightener which I preferably employ in this connection is exactly or nearly the same as one used by me in an invention for which United States Letters Patent No. 471,114: were granted to me on March 22, 1S92with trivial variations when I use two guide-wires i as described below. That is to say, there are two members, the lower one Z being simply a stiff L-shaped piece of metal (a casting if desired), through whose depending arm is passed a screw taking into the window-frame to hold the tightener in place, and through whose upper horizontal arm is a screw-threaded hole m. The upper member 07. is also of L-shape, but its vertical arm projects upwardly and slides against the face of the window-frame. Its lower horizontal arm has a smooth hole 0; and p is a screw passing downwardly through this hole and taking into that lettered 'm, whereby when the screw is turned the two members can be adjusted as desired. The front end of the lower member is preferably rounded as shown for the sake of ornamenta' tion and to prevent clothing the. from catching thereon; but the front end of the upper member is reduced or beveled on its side edges to a narrow neck (1, forward of which it is laterally enlarged to form a head r of considerable width. The side arms of this head form acute angles with the edges of the menr her as at t. In the front end of the head 7' is preferably cut a notch s. A single guide wire '1' as it passes down from the bracket is led through one angle t, along under and across beneath the head '1" at its neck, up in the other angle t, across on top of the head 0' and in front of the wire body, and then again down through the first-mentioned notch t where its extremity wedges tightly therein with the other strand of wire already in place. If the guide wire be double-which I find in many cases to be a great advantagethe two strands thereof as they come down from the bracket, are led first through the central notch s, then separated and passed outward under the arms of the head 7' and beneath the neck q, then upward in the angles t t, then across on top of the head behind the double strand already in place, crossing each other at the center or thereabout, and finally their extremities are forced or wedged tightly down into the angles with the single strands already therein: whereby the wires are securely connected with the tightener. Of course I do not limit myself to this precise winding or tying of the wire, but'experience has proven that it secures the ends of the wires so that they will not slip out of place and so that no ends or extremities will remain to catch and tear the clothes, lace curtains, or other articles. After such fastening, the screw 19 is adjusted to give the guide the proper tension, and all is ready for the shade.

It will be readily observed that this device can be applied to curtain-shades which are already in place. First the roller is removed from the fixtures, and the clasp attached to the end of the stick. The bracket is then brought into place and screwed to the window frame if the curtain-fixture be of the inside type, or passed over the fixture if it be of the outside type-being so located and secured that the lip shall not strike the end of the roller and the perforations therein shall be properly located. The wire (or wires) 2' is then knotted as at j and its plain end passed down through said perforation to the tightener. Here it is secured in the manner described, whether it be a single or double guide-wire; after which the screw is adjusted to give the guide the proper tension. The

roller is now inserted in the fixtures and the shade partly unwound. The clasp is then brought close to the guide, and the arm 32 thereof which stands inside the other arm is pressed against such guide, when this arm will yield by its resilience and the guide will IIS pass within the oval. Herein is present almost absolutely no friction to prevent the free play of parts as the shade is raised and lowered. The enlarged size of the oval permits the shade to have some considerable play and the clasp to pass kinks or bends that sometimes occur in the guides, without binding or catching at all. To detach the clasp from the guide, the latter is brought into position just inside the offset w and a slight pressure in the proper direction will release it therefrom: unless this is done manually the parts cannot become accidentally disconnected. The uses and advantages of guidewires and tighteners of this character are too well known to need repetition here; and the capabilities of this particular construction are believed to be obvious to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed as new is- 1. In a window-shade guide, the combination with abracket consisting of a single piece of plate metal bent over to form two vertical arms one of which is provided with a screwhole and the other of which has a lip with laterally separated perforations, a shade, a clasp at the end of its stick having a laterally elongated opening, and a double guide wire depending from said bracket and passing loosely through said opening; of a tightener comprising two L-shaped members, the uppermost sliding upon and the lowermost secured to the window-frame, and an adjusting screw connecting said members, the front end of the upper member being reduced to form a narrowneck and havinga laterallyelongated head outside said neck, the side arms of said head forming acute angles with the side edges of said front end and the face of the head having 40 a notch at its center, the guide wires being woven into and connected with said head substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a window-shade guide, the combination with the guide wire, the tightener therefor, and the shade having a claspat the end of its stick loosely embracing said wire; of a bracket consisting of a single piece of plate metal and comprising a flat foot with a screwhole therethrough, the metal being bent over forward at the upper edge of said foot and carried down in front of said foot in two side tangs separated farther than the width of the screw-head, and the lip between said tan gs being bent forward above said screw-hole and provided with a perforation for the reception of said guide wire, all as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a window shade guide, the combination with two guide wires, and fixtures for holding them under tension in aplane at right angles to that of the shade and along its vertical edge; of a clasp consisting of two members, the first embracing and being secured to the end of the stick, and the second member being of spring metal, secured to the end of the first member, and having laterally eX- tending integral spring arms curved into a horizontal oval in the ends of which the two wires normally slide, the extremity of one arm having an outward offset which rests upon the extremity of the other arm so that the interior of the oval shall be smooth, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my signature on this the 21st day of November, A. D. 1892.

ALFRED M. HASWELL.

Witnesses:

THOMAS F. BARRY, MAUDE L. BUELL. 

